This technology was used in trial applications in social housing units in London and Scotland. The results proved that the technology allowed for better heating management while helping address fuel poverty in local communities.

“VCharge’s vision is to help electricity grids around the world with the transition to becoming 100 per cent renewable, as the cost of renewable energy becomes more competitive with that of unsustainable fossil fuels,” said VCharge managing director Toby Ferenczi “Joining forces with OVO will dramatically accelerate how quickly we can achieve this goal, and will also enable us to address other important issues such as alleviating fuel poverty in the UK.”

Making power affordable?

Meanwhile, the firm sees the technology advantages from the VCharge acquisition as complimentary to the potential to address electricity affordability issues for many citizens.

“We believe this platform will harness the potential of energy storage in reducing dependency on fossil fuels, while helping to make energy more affordable for all,” said Ovo CEO Stephen Fitzpatrick.

In the partnership, VCharge said it plans to offer free heating control upgrades of electric storage heaters to 1.5 million Great Britain households.

The deal comes against the background of British efforts use smart grid technology to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by millions of tons per year.